As PrettyLittleThing founder and chief executive Umar Kamani is inducted into the Drapers Digital Awards Hall of Fame, he talks to Drapers about creating a legacy and taking the rapidly growing business global.

Drapers Footwear Awards 19 will recognise and celebrate the footwear's very best from across the UK and Ireland.

We have 18 exciting categories up for contest, including International Footwear Business of the Year and Best Sustainable Initiative of the Year.

As PrettyLittleThing founder and chief executive Umar Kamani is inducted into the Drapers Digital Awards Hall of Fame, he talks to Drapers about creating a legacy and taking the rapidly growing business global.

Company Access

A hundred reasons to feel inspired

Putting together our flagship Top 100 list is one of the highlights of the Drapers team’s year.

It is a time to reflect on the successes and the challenges the industry and its leading figures have endured over the preceeding 12 months and to pin down exactly what trends, both in business terms and product terms, have shaped the industry over the year. It’s also an excuse for a good old-fashioned debate (please join in by emailing me your own views at jessica.brown@emap.com).

Traditionally, most of the big names move relatively few places, but this year’s list saw some of the most dramatic swings, new entries and exits since Drapers introduced the Top 100 in 2002.

While our assessment criteria remains the same – to recognise those that have had the biggest influence on UK fashion sales over the past 12 months – the characteristics of 2009’s real winners are very different to that of previous years. Those who have placed the utmost importance on design and differentiation have rocketed up the list, proving that product and innovation are powerful tools in a recession.

This year’s number one is not the biggest business in the UK but it has certainly been the most influential in terms of style, and it has achieved that in exceptionally difficult circumstances. The passion at the heart of head office is what made this business really special and it should be an inspiration to the rest of the sector.

But that’s not to say replicating this company’s designs will bring you instant success. Being successful in fashion is all about being original. There is room for more of that in 2010.

The head of global marketing at Dorothy Perkins and Burton, Stephanie Bamsey, and head of localisation solutions at Translate Media, Daniel Lawrence, revealed how to stand out from the crowd when communicating brand values at the Drapers Digital Festival.

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